Narrabri Gas

Planning & Environment Dept, NSW Government;
Dear Sir or Madam,
I want to personally object to any (existing or proposed) 'fracking' for natural gas extraction within any part of Australia, especially including New South Wales, because I believe that this type of gas extraction technique is very damaging/ polluting to the natural (& until now largely unspoilt) environment of Australia/ NSW; which can have many long term very negative effects; which can seriously & needlessly devastate vast areas of previously arable soils, unique environmental ecosystems & water tables etc; & for potentially many thousands of years to come!
Sadly for millions of long suffering & long ignored taxpayers of Australia/ NSW, our once smart, forward thinking & progressive democratic governments, have again shown that they can only plan for their own short term re-election interests and hence their immediate self interests! (but seemingly never planning for citizens medium/ long-term best interests). Australia is already the largest exporter of natural gas in the whole world today, so why in God's name can't we use some of these vast reserves of properly extracted natural gas for our own citizen's benefit/ usages?; without needing to otherwise devastate (i.e. via fracking) vast tracts of our once pristine environments, especially including unique natural environments like Pillager in NSW.
Sadly it is only because of many past useless Aust. Governments (especially THE most useless, damaging Fed. Govt. from 2007-13), that the citizens of NSW & Australia generally, must bizarrely pay the highest costs for our energy usages (& again just for starters) whilst we literally sit on almost embarrassingly vast energy reserves (none of which requires damaging extraction techniques like fracking does). In return this country's governments (& hence the citizens), bizarrely makes virtually nothing from our natural gas exports & even more bizarrely citizens of foreign countries like Japan which buy our (properly/ cleanly extracted) natural gas, pay less that we do per capita???? (go figure??).
Only Australia's increasingly stupid, shortsighted (& hopefully not corrupt?) governments could have allowed all this insanity, stupidity & or naivety to come about & then having virtually by default gifted our vast reserves of (properly, cleanly extracted/ liquified) natural gas to foreign companies/ foreign governments, we must now in return seriously(??) contemplate destroying vast tracts of our natural environment across this state/ country (i.e. via fracking) to that way find enough gas for our own citizens to use??? (just how insane/ stupid is this needless, lack of planning etc.!!).
Then of course the other needless & yet potentially VERY severe side effects of fracking, will include having the value of all Australia's agricultural exports being SEVERELY downgraded (in quality & hence also in export value/$), because our previous, almost unique status & standing of Australia being seen (by overseas countries/ markets, especially China) as a "clean-green environment", will be TRASHED by wide-spread fracking (& those negative impacts on our struggling farmers alone, will then continue for potentially thousands of years & hence long, LONG after VERY near future technologies have removed any need for any type of natural gas extraction).
But I guess so long as some few politicians/ parties have short sightedly gained some VERY short term political/ financial benefit from fracking (whilst virtually gifting our natural resources, to the highest bidder), then who cares?; well only me and about 23 million other increasingly disillusioned Australian citizens like me of course! Please demonstrate to me and all the millions of other ordinary citizens of this N.S.W., that you are finally listening to all of us & not just expediently to a few select individuals within your government/ party and (supposedly??) your own unrepresentative "public service" bureaucracy (who VERY wrongly seem to be the real autocratic bosses today anyway; either by default & or some persons design!); Kind Regards

I object to the proposal on the grounds that it is a short-sighted exercise motivated by money above long-term and vastly more important concerns including:
- The preservation of this sensitive biodiversity hotspot
- The history of spills leaks by Santos
- The contribution to climate change
- Human health risks
- The local community is opposed to the project.

Given the inevitable shift toward renewable energy it is madness to be pursuing such a damaging project as this.

There is mounting evidence that CSG mining poses substantial risks. These risks include:

Depletion and contamination of underground and surface water systems and supplies
Lack of any safe method of disposal of the large quantities of polluted wastewater brought
to the surface in the extraction process;
Leaking of methane from wells and pipelines and off-gassing of volatile organic compounds
from wastewater storage and compressor stations;
Human and animal health impacts from air, water and soil pollution;
Loss of agricultural land and native vegetation from the large surface footprint of CSG
operations; and
Risk of seismic activity from fracking and aquifer re-injection.

Why contaminate and pollute the water and land for future generations of innocent Australians for the profit of backward thinking, self-interested share-holders of irresponsible corporations?
There are renewable energy options that pay greater dividends in the long run.

A recent poll conducted by The Australia Institute quizzed respondents on their support or opposition on state bans on fracking.
The poll of 1,420 people from 17 March to 24 March 2017 showed 56% support moratoriums on fracking and just 20% oppose them.
"Opening up more land to fracking is not about reducing energy prices for consumers, but about maximising the profits of the gas industry," said TAI Deputy Director Ebony Bennett.

I am writing to lodge a submission in fierce opposition to the proposal for Santos' Narrabri Gas Project in the Pilliga forest.

I cannot believe that this would even be considered in the largest intact woodland in eastern Australia! This unique ecological refuge, home to 25 nationally listed and 48 state-listed threatened species, is a treasure that we cannot allow to be decimated by greed and the drive for short term profits.

The sandstone under the Pilliga is a vital recharge area for the Great Artesian Basin, and creeks that flow through the Pilliga provide clean water into the Murray Darling Basin. These water sources are the lifeblood of farming communities throughout the southeast and inland Australia.

This is a completely morally bankrupt proposition that will do maximum damage to those communities and in the longer term to the health and welbeing of the wider Australian population. The harm to our water table and natural environment is very real and has been demonstrated many times with other CSG projects.

Please do not allow this shocking proposal to be seriously considered.

I oppose the Narrabri Gas project and urge the department to reconsider for the following reasons:
1. The Narrabri Gas Project risks precious water sources, including the Great Artesian Basin--Australia's largest groundwater aquifer
The Narrabri gasfield poses a real risk to our two most precious water resources: the Great Artesian Basin and the Murray-Darling Basin. The area of the Great Artesian Basin with the highest recharge rates is almost entirely contained within the Pilliga East forest. In a worst-case scenario, the water removed for CSG extraction could reduce water pressure in the recharge areas--potentially stopping the free flow of waters to the surface at springs and bores across the whole Great Artesian Basin.

Creeks in the Pilliga run into the Namoi River--a part of the Murray Darling Basin. This system is vulnerable to contamination from drilling fluid spills and the salty treated water produced from the proposed 850 wells.

2. The Gamilaraay Traditional Custodians are opposed
There are hundreds of cultural sites as well as songlines and stories connecting the Gamilaraay to the forest and to the groundwater beneath. Gamilaraay people are deeply involved in the battle against CSG, and have told Santos they do not want their country sacrificed for a coal seam gas field.

3. Farmers and other local community reject the project
Extensive community surveys have shown an average of 96% opposition to CSG. This stretches across a massive 3.2 million hectares of country surrounding the Pilliga forest, including 99 communities. Hundreds of farmers have participated in protest actions unlike any previously seen in the region.

4. The Narrabri Gas Project has a long history of spills and leaks of toxic CSG water--Santos cannot be trusted to manage the project safely
Santos has already contaminated a freshwater aquifer in the Pilliga with uranium at levels 20 times higher than safe drinking water guidelines, as well as lead, aluminium, arsenic and barium. In addition, there have been over 20 reported spills and leaks of toxic CSG water from storage ponds, pipes and well heads. Santos cannot be trusted.

5. The Pilliga is a haven for threatened wildlife
The Pilliga is one of 15 nationally listed `biodiversity hotspots' and is vital to the survival of threatened species like the Koala, Spotted-tailed Quoll, Black-striped Wallaby, Eastern Pygmy-possum, Pilliga Mouse and South-eastern Long-eared Bat. The forest is home to over 200 bird species and is internationally recognised as an Important Bird Area. The Santos gasfield would fragment 95,000 hectares of the Pilliga with well pads, roads, and water and gas pipelines--damaging vital habitat and threatening the survival of endangered species.

6. Human health is compromised by coal seam gas
A range of hydrocarbons and volatile organic compounds can be released into the air from coal seam gas operations, including flaring of gas wells. The effects of volatile organic compounds vary, but can cause eye, nose and airway irritation, headache, nausea, dizziness and loss of coordination. These impacts have been documented in human populations nearby to existing gasfields in Queensland, Sydney and in America.

7. The nation's premier optical astronomical observatory is at risk
The Siding Springs Observatory, situated in the Warrumbungles and adjacent to the Pilliga, is under threat from the Narrabri Gas Project due to light and dust pollution⁵. The area has been internationally recognised as a `dark sky park'⁶ and the 50m high gas flares proposed by Santos threaten the viability of the facility.

8. Thousands of tonnes of salt waste will result from the project
Santos has no solution for disposing of the hundreds of thousands of tonnes of salt that will be produced. Between 17,000 and 42,000 tonnes of salt waste would be produced each year. This industry would leave a toxic legacy in NSW.

9. Risk of fires would increase throughout the Pilliga's tinder-box conditions
Methane flare stacks up to 50m high would be running day and night, even on total fire ban days. The Pilliga is prone to severe bushfires. The project would increase ignition sources as well as extracting, transporting and storing a highly flammable gas right within this extremely fire-prone forest.

There is no reasonable assurance of safety from Great Artesian Basement [GAB] contamination using current or foreseeable extraction technology. The GAB is with us for ever (at least 1 million years). The use of gas is a passing decade phase in the transition to solar energy technologies, now movng into the economically viable stage much faster than anyone expected even 10 years ago. It would be a lasting millstone about any party's neck who let the contamination happen for a transitory buck.

Two words for you: global warming
three more: Indigenous land rights

I write in urgent response to the NSW Government's invitation to comment upon the Environmental Impact Statement it is considering relating to the Narrabri Gas Project. Further, I urge Government to halt any coal seam gas exploration or development in this State until there is irrefutable evidence of the likely impact of such activity upon our continental water table, and until options for all renewable sources of energy have been adequately analysed and assessed. The EIS sadly confirms that these fundamental questions have yet to be addressed and that current thinking in government has been informed by short-term financial consideration to the exclusion of all else.

It may be an arguable approach to managing the State within the context of our four-year electoral cycle, but the costs to us all would be catastrophic.

My family of seventh-generation Australians share a deeply-embedded understanding of the widespread and often irreversible results of ill-considered development and exploitation of this country's fertile but now critically imperilled forests, pastures and waterways over two centuries. Everyone is now much better informed than might previously have been the case, and, consequent upon that enlightenment, no member of our State Parliament can in good conscience support the Narrabri proposal.

I respectfully request that government's current deliberations will halt coal seam gas exploration and development in New South Wales until we all have a much better understanding of what's truly at stake.

The Narrabri Gas Project risks precious water sources, including the Great Artesian BasinÂ--AustraliaÂ's largest groundwater aquifer. Join the 10,000+ people who have lodged a formal objection. You can copy and paste these 10 points, takes about 3 minutes...
1. The Narrabri Gas Project risks precious water sources, including the Great Artesian BasinÂ--AustraliaÂ's largest groundwater aquifer
The Narrabri gasfield poses a real risk to our two most precious water resources: the Great Artesian Basin and the Murray-Darling Basin. The area of the Great Artesian Basin with the highest recharge rates is almost entirely contained within the Pilliga East forest. In a worst-case scenario, the water removed for CSG extraction could reduce water pressure in the recharge areasÂ--potentially stopping the free flow of waters to the surface at springs and bores across the whole Great Artesian Basin.¹

Creeks in the Pilliga run into the Namoi RiverÂ--a part of the Murray Darling Basin. This system is vulnerable to contamination from drilling fluid spills and the salty treated water produced from the proposed 850 wells.

2. The Gamilaraay Traditional Custodians are opposed
There are hundreds of cultural sites as well as songlines and stories connecting the Gamilaraay to the forest and to the groundwater beneath. Gamilaraay people are deeply involved in the battle against CSG, and have told Santos they do not want their country sacrificed for a coal seam gas field.

3. Farmers and other local community reject the project
Extensive community surveys have shown an average of 96% opposition to CSG. This stretches across a massive 3.2 million hectares of country surrounding the Pilliga forest, including 99 communities. Hundreds of farmers have participated in protest actions unlike any previously seen in the region.

4. The Narrabri Gas Project has a long history of spills and leaks of toxic CSG waterÂ--Santos cannot be trusted to manage the project safely
Santos has already contaminated a freshwater aquifer in the Pilliga with uranium at levels 20 times higher than safe drinking water guidelines, as well as lead, aluminium, arsenic and barium². In addition, there have been over 20 reported spills and leaks of toxic CSG water from storage ponds, pipes and well heads. Santos cannot be trusted.

5. The Pilliga is a haven for threatened wildlife
The Pilliga is one of 15 nationally listed Â`biodiversity hotspotsÂ' and is vital to the survival of threatened species like the Koala, Spotted-tailed Quoll, Black-striped Wallaby, Eastern Pygmy-possum, Pilliga Mouse and South-eastern Long-eared Bat. The forest is home to over 200 bird species and is internationally recognised as an Important Bird Area². The Santos gasfield would fragment 95,000 hectares of the Pilliga with well pads, roads, and water and gas pipelinesÂ--damaging vital habitat and threatening the survival of endangered species.

6. Coal seam gas fuels dangerous climate change
Methane is by far the major component of natural gas, and is a greenhouse gas 72 times more powerful than CO2. CSG fields contribute to climate change through the leakage of methane during the production, transport, processing and use of coal seam gas.

7. Human health is compromised by coal seam gas
A range of hydrocarbons and volatile organic compounds can be released into the air from coal seam gas operations, including flaring of gas wells. The effects of volatile organic compounds vary, but can cause eye, nose and airway irritation, headache, nausea, dizziness and loss of coordination⁴. These impacts have been documented in human populations nearby to existing gasfields in Queensland, Sydney and in America.

8. The nationÂ's premier optical astronomical observatory is at risk
The Siding Springs Observatory, situated in the Warrumbungles and adjacent to the Pilliga, is under threat from the Narrabri Gas Project due to light and dust pollution⁵. The area has been internationally recognised as a Â`dark sky parkÂ'⁶ and the 50m high gas flares proposed by Santos threaten the viability of the facility.

9. Thousands of tonnes of salt waste will result from the project
Santos has no solution for disposing of the hundreds of thousands of tonnes of salt that will be produced. Between 17,000 and 42,000 tonnes of salt waste would be produced each year. This industry would leave a toxic legacy in NSW.

10. Risk of fires would increase throughout the PilligaÂ's tinder-box conditions
Methane flare stacks up to 50m high would be running day and night, even on total fire ban days. The Pilliga is prone to severe bushfires. The project would increase ignition sources as well as extracting, transporting and storing a highly flammable gas right within this extremely fire-prone forest.

As a citizen of Australia and resident of NSW I wish to register my objection to developing a Coal seam gas project in the Piliga region of North west NSW.
I agree with the 93% of people in north west NSW who have already stated their objection and have fought long and hard against the project.
As a lover of this great country and one who has travelled many times in the outback I believe that we have to think carefully about how we use our natural resources.
Last time I looked this country still had a democracy and although governments are elected to govern it is the people that need to be consulted when you are considering a project of this nature which will destroy the ecology of an ancient area simply by it's design and needs of the project and most importantly has the potential to affect the re-charge area of the Great Artesian basin.
We need to be custodians of this natural resource and protect the gift we have of water, not open it up to the careless activity of mining companies like Santos who naturally are more interested in the project as a money making concern and have already allowed contamination of the aquifer in the nw of NSW.
I ask you to listen to the people.

I am writing to object to the Narrabri gas project.
The main points being that it will destroy the Pilliga state forest, decreasing habitats for wildlife especially threatened species. It has the great potential to contaminate a vital water source, the Great Artesian Basin, used by many people including farmers and the indigenous community of the region. It will potentially increase air and light pollution in the region leading to the downfall of an important astronomical observatory. The project will produce an enormous amount of salt waste with no proper method of disposal in areas where salinity is already a major problem. Also, the infrastructure of CSG sites, namely methane flares, can increase the likelihood of bush fires in the region.

All these points should make the decision easy for the project to be cancelled. This is a time when governmental bodies need to change their attitudes regarding our precious and already highly threatened environment and realise that the natural environment that sustains us humans is much more important that short term financial gain. It is time for a great change and finally time for politicians to realise they are in office to serve the people of this country, not line their pockets with cash. Please show that you are indeed working for the people by cancelling this project because the Australian people want a healthy planet for our future generations.

To: The NSW Government -

Precipitation in the Riverina has already dropped 20% + over the past twenty years, due to global warming - as predicted, though ahead of time. In such a context, please do not disrupt one very fragile and important water table in the north-west of the state.

And please respond with some backbone to the pressure the gas companies have put on you. If I was a Director of a gas company facing community resistance to my exploration efforts, I would manufacture an artificial shortage too - but you were elected to govern for all of us, not just to respond to the hardball of one specific sector.

To Whom it May Concern:

I am objecting to the Narrabri Gas Project on the following grounds.

The Santos' EIS is very short on detail. It does not provide maps indicating where these 850 wells and the lines and infrastructure that run between and around them will go. Santos is seeking a blank cheque consent for this gasfield on the promise that it will decide where the wells will go afterward using a "Field Development Protocol." No project has ever been assessed this way before in NSW and the constraints Santos propose are weak and subject to change later on. This is not an appropriate way to assess the largest development project ever undertaken under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act and the Government must insist that Santos release details to the public about the placement of its wells, pipelines and some other infrastructure.

The significant harm on the social, environmental and economic values of the Narrabri Shire and New South Wales that this project will inflict needs to be weighed against the economic justification for the project, but there is no such economic justification. Santos is one of several large gas companies that threw the east coast gas market and the industries that rely on it into turmoil by opening up CSG fields in Queensland and contracting to sell more gas than those fields can produce to overseas customers. They drove up the price of gas and are plundering supplies previously available to manufacturers and power stations. The gas produced at Narrabri might be as little as 4.9% of the volume contracted for sale out of Gladstone. It's not going to bring down prices, in fact, it will force prices up because unconventional gas like CSG is so expensive to produce and yields are so low. Research undertaken by gas company AGL shows that gas from the Pilliga would be the most expensive gas of anywhere in the current east coast gas market. The number of jobs the project will support once the construction is over is just 145. Weighed against damage to the land, and the Great Artesian Basin, this makes no sense. We need sustainable jobs, not plunder for extremely short term profit.

The Santos' project is expected to remove 37.5GL of groundwater over the life of the gasfield, mostly in the early years. The coal seam needs to be dewatered to release the gas, but this aquifer lies beneath the Pilliga Sandstone, part of the Great Artesian Basin recharge. Santos' EIS admits that the project will result in a loss of water from the GAB recharge aquifer over time. CSG in Queensland has drawn down GAB aquifers already. We can't afford to risk this absolutely crucial resource on a continent as dry as ours.


The water removed from the ground by Santos will be treated, but this creates another problem: what to do with the salt? Peak salt production at Narrabri CSG will be 115 tonnes per day, or two and a half B-double truckloads per day. In the peak year, this would mean the creation of 41,900 tonnes of salt for disposal, which Santos says will take place in landfill.

The Pilliga is a spiritual, cultural and social icon for Gomeroi/Gamilaraay people. Fragmentation and industrialisation cuts people off from their heritage and connection to country.

Biodiversity and the Pilliga: The Pilliga is also the largest temperate woodland in New South Wales. Santos propose clearing nearly 1,000ha of the Pilliga, including habitat for critically endangered Regent honeyeater and for koalas, which are already in decline in the Pilliga. Spread across the whole forest, this clearing will fragment much larger areas of habitat. The gasfield will clear breeding habitat for the Pilliga Mouse, which lives nowhere else, and breeding habitat for other wildlife. It will fragment and degrade the forest. Without specific information about where the wells and lines will be located, a proper ecological impact assessment can't be completed. Regardless, the Pilliga is a cherished natural and cultural icon and must be protected from becoming an inefficient industrial gasfield.

Santos' social impact assessment is three years old and extremely inadequate. The compendium of health studies produced by the Concerned Health Professionals of New York shows mounting evidence for health damage by unconventional gas operations, including water contamination and respiratory illness. The Government must insist that Santos conduct a proper health impact assessment including modelling exposure pathways, reviewing literature and engagement with the Narrabri community. In Narrabri, this project will have negative impacts on cost-of-living, the labour and housing markets. The latter is cited in as a benefit of the project but it will not benefit low-income renters. The effect of the project on cost-of-living in the Shire needs to be modelled, assessed and considered, as do the labour dynamics of the project. The project entirely surrounds Yarrie Lake, and Santos propose that wells might come as close as 200m from the Lake.

The air quality assessment fails to include health-damaging fine particulate pollution with a diameter of 2.5 microns or less (known as PM2.5). With diesel generators at each well pad and at the water treatment and gas compression plants, there will be significant PM2.5 emissions. The air quality assessment and greenhouse section also fail to model the likely substantial escape of fugitive methane emissions, a critical greenhouse gas.

Light pollution from flares, compressor stations and the water treatment plant will ruin the dark sky needed by the internationally renowned Siding Spring Observatory.

Recent research by the Melbourne Energy Institute shows that Australia may be dramatically under-estimating the fugitive methane emissions from unconventional gas, including coal seam gas. It's not needed or useful as a source of energy: we have the technology we need to replace gas with renewable energy sources.

We need to look forward to the Australia we are leaving future generations. We need to think of innovative ways to supply energy, we have an abundant amount of sun, we need to look to solar power not damaging CSG. Once the damage is done through these projects it can NEVER be undone. Think long and hard before approving this project. Think of the children and grandchildren that you will need to look in the eye and say you did the best for them and the future of all Australians.

Can you do that?

Dear Sir/ Madam

As you must know, Australia is the driest inhabited Continent in the world, and as such, CSG should most certainly not be using The Great Artesian Basin for extraction or any other use , especially where a huge amount of water is needed, water which is so contaminated that there is nothing else it can be re-used for! There are too many threats that CSG mining would do to this beautiful and 'Traditionally owned' land. Human health, wildlife, massive enviromental impacts, especially Global warming, and if you know anything about Nuclear waste/ Uranium, then this alone should scare you into halting this insane and ' finite ' way of obtaining energy! These are 'some' of the foreseen impacts, but of course, there would be many that are not.
Please, I urge you to STOP this happening, for the citizens alive now, and for the generations, your families included, who would just ' exist ' because of this!

Regards,
Peta Bindoff

I'm a voter and I care. This needs to be denied, it is helping bring about the destruction of our country, our planet and our future.
NO MORE!!!! Deny this application!!!

I oppose the development of the Narrabri Gas Project. I do not accept that the development of this natural gas resource is necessary to address gas supply issues. There is already an abundance of natural gas resources currently developed in Australia, the current level of high CSG exports is causing gas supply issues. I believe we do not know enough about future impacts of a CSG industry on environments, industries and communities to guarantee a safe and prosperous future in the Narrabri shire. I do not accept that the community has been, or will be, treated with respect and fairness by the companies seeking to develop the gas resource in the Pilliga. I do not accept that Santos has been honest with the local communities whom they seek approval from. I believe any potential benefits of this CSG project are far and above outweighed by negative environmental, social and economic impacts we are already experiencing as a community, which I believe will only increase in severity into the future.

The Great Artesian Basin is the heart of our Australian Underground water system. Without this great treasure, the very survival of flora and fauna - including Australians ourselves - is at peril. I say leave the water alone, underground, where it has remained undisturbed for millennia, and where it continues to be the life blood of our great nation. You can't drink CSG.

I am concerned that the Narrabri Gas Project risks precious water sources, including the Great Artesian Basin--Australia's largest groundwater aquifer. By the water removed for CSG extraction reducing water pressure in the recharge areas--potentially stopping the free flow of waters to the surface at springs and bores across the whole Great Artesian Basin.This system is vulnerable to contamination from drilling fluid spills and the salty treated water produced from the proposed 850 wells.

I understand that the Gamilaraay Traditional Custodians are opposed
as hundreds of cultural sites as well as songlines and stories connecting the Gamilaraay to the forest and to the groundwater beneath. Also farmers and other local community reject the project in the region.

Is it true that the Narrabri Gas Project has a long history of spills and leaks of toxic CSG water? I cannot then trust Santos to manage the project safely with such an important resource as safe drinking water.


My biggest concern is the Pilliga being a haven for threatened wildlife with 15 nationally listed `biodiversity hotspots' and is vital to the survival of threatened species like the Koala, Spotted-tailed Quoll, Black-striped Wallaby, Eastern Pygmy-possum, Pilliga Mouse and South-eastern Long-eared Bat. The forest is home to over 200 bird species and is internationally recognised as an Important Bird Area². The Santos gasfield would fragment 95,000 hectares of the Pilliga with well pads, roads, and water and gas pipelines--damaging vital habitat and threatening the survival of endangered species.

Without safeguards to safely protect the wildlife and risks of toxic spills, I am thereby strongly opposed to this proposal.

1. The Narrabri Gas Project risks precious water sources, including the Great Artesian Basin--Australia's largest groundwater aquifer
The Narrabri gasfield poses a real risk to our two most precious water resources: the Great Artesian Basin and the Murray-Darling Basin. The area of the Great Artesian Basin with the highest recharge rates is almost entirely contained within the Pilliga East forest. In a worst-case scenario, the water removed for CSG extraction could reduce water pressure in the recharge areas--potentially stopping the free flow of waters to the surface at springs and bores across the whole Great Artesian Basin.¹

Creeks in the Pilliga run into the Namoi River--a part of the Murray Darling Basin. This system is vulnerable to contamination from drilling fluid spills and the salty treated water produced from the proposed 850 wells.

2. The Gamilaraay Traditional Custodians are opposed
There are hundreds of cultural sites as well as songlines and stories connecting the Gamilaraay to the forest and to the groundwater beneath. Gamilaraay people are deeply involved in the battle against CSG, and have told Santos they do not want their country sacrificed for a coal seam gas field.

3. Farmers and other local community reject the project
Extensive community surveys have shown an average of 96% opposition to CSG. This stretches across a massive 3.2 million hectares of country surrounding the Pilliga forest, including 99 communities. Hundreds of farmers have participated in protest actions unlike any previously seen in the region.

4. The Narrabri Gas Project has a long history of spills and leaks of toxic CSG water--Santos cannot be trusted to manage the project safely
Santos has already contaminated a freshwater aquifer in the Pilliga with uranium at levels 20 times higher than safe drinking water guidelines, as well as lead, aluminium, arsenic and barium². In addition, there have been over 20 reported spills and leaks of toxic CSG water from storage ponds, pipes and well heads. Santos cannot be trusted.

5. The Pilliga is a haven for threatened wildlife
The Pilliga is one of 15 nationally listed `biodiversity hotspots' and is vital to the survival of threatened species like the Koala, Spotted-tailed Quoll, Black-striped Wallaby, Eastern Pygmy-possum, Pilliga Mouse and South-eastern Long-eared Bat. The forest is home to over 200 bird species and is internationally recognised as an Important Bird Area². The Santos gasfield would fragment 95,000 hectares of the Pilliga with well pads, roads, and water and gas pipelines--damaging vital habitat and threatening the survival of endangered species.

6. Coal seam gas fuels dangerous climate change
Methane is by far the major component of natural gas, and is a greenhouse gas 72 times more powerful than CO2. CSG fields contribute to climate change through the leakage of methane during the production, transport, processing and use of coal seam gas.

7. Human health is compromised by coal seam gas
A range of hydrocarbons and volatile organic compounds can be released into the air from coal seam gas operations, including flaring of gas wells. The effects of volatile organic compounds vary, but can cause eye, nose and airway irritation, headache, nausea, dizziness and loss of coordination⁴. These impacts have been documented in human populations nearby to existing gasfields in Queensland, Sydney and in America.

8. The nation's premier optical astronomical observatory is at risk
The Siding Springs Observatory, situated in the Warrumbungles and adjacent to the Pilliga, is under threat from the Narrabri Gas Project due to light and dust pollution⁵. The area has been internationally recognised as a `dark sky park'⁶ and the 50m high gas flares proposed by Santos threaten the viability of the facility.

9. Thousands of tonnes of salt waste will result from the project
Santos has no solution for disposing of the hundreds of thousands of tonnes of salt that will be produced. Between 17,000 and 42,000 tonnes of salt waste would be produced each year. This industry would leave a toxic legacy in NSW.

10. Risk of fires would increase throughout the Pilliga's tinder-box conditions
Methane flare stacks up to 50m high would be running day and night, even on total fire ban days. The Pilliga is prone to severe bushfires. The project would increase ignition sources as well as extracting, transporting and storing a highly flammable gas right within this extremely fire-prone forest.
- See more at: https://www.wilderness.org.au/final-push-pilliga#sthash.9VrAl65s.dpuf

The precious Pilliga, so quintessentially Australian but so very fragile, must be preserved - it is the responsibility of us all! Maintaining the health of the forest and aquifer has reverberations for the whole of the Great Artesian Basin. Increased soil salinity already threatening our food bowls has the capacity to be catastrophically increased along with further pollution by dangerous substances such as the uranium and other metals which has already occurred in the initial pilot project. Big business (Santos) have already shown they cannot be trusted with the pollution (and subsequent cover-up) they have already inflicted on the Pilliga. Cultural heritage will be gradually destroyed - 'death by a thousand cuts'- as the number of wells increases. It is sometimes said that 'we get the government we deserve'. I feel desperately sad that it appears some of our elected representatives feel we deserve to have our heritage (first Australians and white Australians) and the future well-being of our children and grandchildren sacrificed irreparably for the short-term dollar gain of gas sales. Please, please save the unique and precious Pilliga from destructive coal seam gas exploitation.